There are a handful of restaurants on Hawaii Island that every knows: Ken’s (Hilo), Jackie Rey’s (Kailua-Kona) Huggo’s (Kailua-Kona), Sam Choy’s Kai Lanai (Waimea), Krua Thai Cuisine (Kailua-Kona) and TEX Drive In (Honoka’a).
Interestingly, Kona Impact has done work for all of these restaurants over the years. Recently, we completed a website for TEX Drive In.
Famous for inexpensive “ono grindz” (tasty local food), TEX Drive In has been a landmark on the Hamakua Coast for over forty years. While the food is quite tasty, they are best known for Malasadas–a Portugese doughnut-like treat that can be filled with chocolate, cream and a host of other yummy fillings.
We were fans of TEX Drive In long before they became our clients. Without exception, every time we would drive by, we stopped for lunch, dinner or some Malasadas. It is a great place to stop as your circle the island.
Our goal with the website was to capture the essence of their location–awesome blues and greens from the land and sea. Other features include full menus–in English and Japanese–and an interactive map.
“There’s nothing to do!” “I’ll probably just sit around and watch TV all summer.”
Summer vacations in Kona can either be a time to learn new things, a chance to explore Hawaii and meet new friends, or it can be a time when kids “hang out”, get into trouble and generally waste the days away.
One of the summer programs we came across recently is the Hokulani Arts and Creative Learning Center in Kailua-Kona. The summer programs are designed for teenagers, with a plethora of activities planned for each session. We sincerely hope that a lof Kona teans check this out and participate in at least a session or two.
Kona Impact designed the website and programmed the custom online registration form.
I was listening to an audiobook this morning on the way to work. What caught my attention was a statement, with considerable discussion after it, proclaiming that “marketing is now free.”
Wow! Marketing is now free! Really?
One thing that all business owners know is that nothing is free. Everything has a cost. For most businesses the greatest cost is employee salary and benefits. For a sole proprietorship, the greatest cost is time. This is money.
The other cost, which is perhaps even greater for a business is what is called “opportunity cost”—the cost of not doing some activity in favor of another activity. In other words, not doing something because you are doing something else is a potential opportunity cost. Wasting time not only accrues personnel costs, but it also distracts personnel from doing things that will benefit the business in the future.
Sure, Facebook, email campaigns, posting on Twitter, blogging, and so on can be very beneficial to a business—there is no doubt about this—but the costs of setting them up and maintaining them can be substantial. Many times, especially if done ineffectively, these costs will greatly surpass the value of additional sales or clients.
The opportunity costs can be much greater. At Kona Impact, we see people every day that have incorrect information about the value of some online marketing tools and actions. Pursuing these ill-advised pathways are not only a waste of effort for the activity itself, but also act distract the business from something that will be much more effective.
The true cost of any online marketing—whether initially free or not—include the staff time necessary to setup and maintain the tool, but also the opportunities lost by pursuing those tools.
At Kona Impact, we understand the big picture of online marketing—what works and doesn’t work—as well as the very real costs engaging in these activities. We never proscribe a client a laundry list of social media activities or set up blogs that are likely to be seldom used. Instead, we work with clients and guide them to the most productive marketing tools and activities for their circumstance.
We are giving away free USB flash drives to our next 25 new clients. These nifty flash drives make a nice bracelet and come in your choice of blue or blue.
We have received, as well as a few of our clients, a very interesting and clever cold call pitch for search engine marketing services. The caller (often from a blocked number) says that he can make our website #1 on Google.
With over 15 years of experience making websites and doing search engine marketing, I quickly realize that there is something very fishy here. After all, Google uses well over 200 criteria for its search engine results and if the all of these were known and could be manipulated by search engine marketers with exact precision, they would become meaningless as everyone would become #1 on Google.
The trick and I do admit it is a clever one, is that the cold caller will indeed put you at number one on Google, but only in the paid results. For example, if I pay enough, I can be number one for “Hawaii web design”, but I will be there only as long as I keep paying. The caller is not promising to make you #1 for the organic results, the place where every search engine marketer wants to be, because these results are likely to be there month after month, and there are no pay-per-click costs.
We can do the math for the “#1 on Google” plan. The cold caller figures out (it’s easy to do with access to the right databases) that the average cost per click for “kona scuba diving” is $1.50 and there are 300 searches a month for this. He knows that approximately 20% of those searches will click the top paid result, so to stay on the top of the Google paid results will cost somewhere around $90 (300 searches x 20% click rate X $1.50 a click) a month.
He then cold calls some dive charters in Kona and say, “I can make your business #1 on Google for “kona scuba diving” next month for only $150. Did you know that there are 300 searches for it? You will be #1 all month, I assure you. We guarantee it!”
The charter boat operator thinks this is a good deal. Is it?
Yes, if you’re the person setting up the ad and making $60 a month per key word. I can assure you that, if for some reason, the cost of running the ad approaches what is paid, you will not see your ad anymore. The model only works if the amount charged to the business owner is quite a bit less than what is paid for the ads.
A better approach would be to set up your own ad using Google Adwords or have someone like Kona Impact do it for you—we charge a one-time fee. You’ll get more visitors and spend less money. An even better long-term approach would be to work with a company like Kona Impact to be found toward the top of the organic searches. This is a lot less expensive in the long term.
So, the next time, or the first time, someone cold calls you with an online marketing scheme that seems too good to be true, it is. Hang up. Call someone in your community. If that community is Hawaii Island, call us: 329-6077.
\We received a call the other day from a business that was looking to have a new website made. Within a few seconds of answering the call, we found ourselves in a familiar script:
Caller: How much does a website cost?
Us: It depends. Much like a new car, there are models and features that can impact your costs.
Caller: Well, we got a quote from someone that was $500 for a five page website. He’s a college student who is learning web design.
Us: OK. I see. Well, we are a professional web design team and we couldn’t come anywhere close to what the student quoted you.
Caller: Ok. Thanks for your time. Bye.
We hope it works out well for the caller. Maybe the student he found was particularly adept, focused and knowledgeable about web design. Maybe he’ll make a great website for the business. Our experience tells us, however, that seldom does the buyer’s expectations and needs meet the novice designer’s end product.
Here are a few critical problems with novice designers:
- The project is on-the-job training. We often find low price quotes are used as a way for a novice designer to get some money for a project they are woefully unqualified to complete at the onset. They don’t ask for a lot of money because they don’t have a lot of skills. They hope to learn as they go along and figure things out. Seldom is the final product (if it even gets to this stage) something that is useful. Timelines are seldom adhered to.
- They have no search engine optimization focus. There are many decisions a web design team makes that impacts the ability of a website to be found online. There are several things an experienced team will do to help the buyer produce good, web-ready content. Without an understanding of these issues, it is unlikely the website will do well on the search engines. It’s kind of like building nice restaurant without any roads leading to it.
- No design sense with great programming or no programming sense with nice design. Websites have a visual aspect that is supported by underlying website programming. Most people who work with websites have a definite skillset that is often in the “designer” or the “programmer” sphere. Seldom does one person have very strong skills in both areas. This is why you almost always will do better with a team working on your site instead of one individual.
Projects are never simple.
There are, of course, times when the low cost provider can produce something that is well beyond the value of what is paid. Most of the time, however, the you really do get what you pay for.
If you’re looking for a professional web design experience and project in Hawaii, give us a call at 808-329-6077.
We often have customers come to our office and ask us whether a particular sign is “legal”. Our response is always the same: We don’t know. We’re not lawyers. Check with the County.
The County of Hawaii sign Code (click to download) is 28 pages long, and, well, a bit detailed. In the end, the sign code seems to be something that, while written with good intentions, does not have much basis in the reality of owning property or running a business in Hawaii.
Though (again!) I don’t work for the county, I would realistically say that upwards of 90% of the signs in Kailua-Kona violate the sign code in some way. It is, in effect, a sign code that has not or can not be enforced.
For many businesses, this is due to practical considerations: they are located off the main streets and it would be impossible for them to run the business without putting an A-frame sign on their building’s property by the street. For other businesses, it’s simply a matter of financial resources. A banner might costs $100 and a large, back-illuminated sign would cost several thousand dollars. The choice is easy, especially in these hard times when many business owners are having a hard time even paying rent.
After we tell our clients that we do not have a definite answer, we do tell them what we see in practice. Note: this is not in law, but in practice–the two are very different. The law always trumps in practice when the inspector comes around.
If you put a banner on someone else’s property, don’t be surprised when it’s gone. The is the rule of Common Sense.
There are several places in town that have multiple banners. Some of these are on public property. If you’re advertising an upcoming event, you might be OK. But, then again, you might lose your banner.
If you put a banner on your building (or inside the window) you are probably safe…in practice.
Most signs affixed to a building do not seem to arouse controversy, as long as the landlord and building owner approve.
If you are one of the idiots who staple or tape flyers to telephone polls or street lights, stop. I seldom see these taken down after the concert or garage sale. When you find your lost dog or cat, have the courtesy to remove the flyers.
Putting up an A-frame in any place that people walk is more than likely to get you in trouble. Got enough liability insurance?
A-frames on private property and away from walking areas don’t seem to be a huge issue.
Finally, Saturdays and Sundays are days off for the people who enforce the sign code (to my knowledge).
We make a lot of signs at Kona Impact, and we will certainly tell you if, in practice, what you want is not a good idea. That said, we always put the final responsibility with the buyer. If you have any questions, give us a call at 329-6077
There are few things more cost-effective for promoting a local business than than vehicle graphics, especially in a town, like Kailua-Kona, that is very vehicle-dependent. Whether it is a trip to Costco, a local restaurant or the gas station, our trucks and cars are how we get around. So, why not make your vehicle a “mobile marketing machine”?
There are many options that won’t break the bank:
1. vehicle magnets – About $100/set. These are nice if you are looking for something that is removable and re-positional.
2. semi-permanent vinyl – Great for a company car or van. Long-lasting and can have any graphics or logo you desire.
3. see-though window vinyl. These can be printing with any graphic or message and allow the driver to see clearly out the window. This material is expensive, but it’s an awesome way to have your vehicle provide visibility for your business.
At Kona Impact, we specialize in working with small and medium-size businesses in Kona, Hawaii. We seek to provide cost-effective solutions with attentive and responsive customer service. When you’re ready to grow your business give us a call at 808-329-6077.
Part of what we do at Kona Impact is working with businesses on their online marketing needs. This include search engine optimization (SEO), setting up ad campaigns and general consulting for online marketing. Many of these clients come to us with a pre-existing website or involve us at the early stages of their website design process. We do not require that the website be designed by us.
One innovative local business we have assisted in this way is Kona Family Fishing Charters. Their specialty is, of course, family fishing charters. They have assembled a small, select group of fishing charters that welcome family charters, and most importantly, have boats and personalities that make for a great day on the water for resident and visiting families.
Not only have they focused on an under-served group of tourists, they have focused on charters that are truly family-friendly. It’s easy to say anything about a charter operations, but the owners, Dennis and Lee, have a level of understanding about the Kona fishing fleet that is unsurpassed.
They only choose the best, and invited that select group to join their fleet.
It can’t be emphasized enough that all boats and captains are not equal, and there is a lot of value in having an insider’s knowledge when selecting a charter boat in Kona.
I just saw an ad for a web design company that seemed to have a great deal – $999 for a website. Wow, I thought, not bad, but what’s the catch?
As I looked a little deeper we could see the catch, or catches easily. The first was “1 revision with additional revisions $75″. In the design world, especially the web design world, this is simply absurd. At Kona Impact we have literally done website where there have been upwards of thirty revisions. A revision is simply a change, so changing a color, font, background, logo placement or word is a revision. It is inconceivable that a web design company would only offer one revision!
The downside for a client, the buyer, is that he or she will end up with a template website that is not customized at all. For one’s Grand Canyon family photos, this is fine, but for a professional business, one that wants to be found online and attract new customers, a template site is certainly not the way to go. In other words, you will take what they come up with, and because the revisions are cost-prohibitive, you will end up with something that is kind of like a pair of shoes that is two sizes too big (or small)–they may work, but they are not what you want.
At Kona Impact we never set in stone the number of revisions for website. In the end, we want the client to receive what he or she wants, and if it takes many revisions to get there–it usually does–we’re fine with that as we priced the project appropriately in the first place.
We don’t believe in hidden costs or using “bait and switch” pricing. Instead we come up with fair prices that allow us the time and resources to make a truly great website. The client wins because he or she knows the project cost at the beginning The client also knows that revisions are part of the process and are not going to cost extra. We win because we plan for the time resources to get things done right.
If you’re looking for a great product, your website, and a comfortable process give us a call. Better yet, stop by our office for a free, no-hassle consultation (call first, though). 329-6077.
